H19 mRNA-like noncoding RNA promotes breast cancer cell proliferation through positive control by E2F1.

The imprinted H19 gene has riboregulatory functions. We show here that H19 transcription is up-regulated during the S-phase of growth-stimulated cells and that the H19 promoter is activated by E2F1 in breast cancer cells. H19 repression by pRb and E2F6 confirms the E2F1-dependent control of the H19 promoter.

The human H19 gene is frequently overexpressed in myometrium and stroma during pathological endometrial proliferative events.

We studied the patterns of H19 expression in normal, hyperplastic and neoplastic human uterine tissues. H19 RNAs were detected by an in situ hybridisation technique (ISH). In both normal and pathological conditions, H19 was expressed in stromal and myometrial cells, but never in epithelial cells.

Hormonal regulation of H19 gene expression in prostate epithelial cells.

The H19 gene is transcribed in an mRNA-like noncoding RNA. When tumors of various organs or cell types are considered, H19 oncogene or tumor-suppressor status remains controversial. To address the potential regulation of H19 gene expression by an androgen steroid hormone (DHT: dihydrotestosterone) or by a peptidic hormone (PRL: prolactin), we performed experiments in rats systemically treated with chemical mediators.

Overexpression of an ectopic H19 gene enhances the tumorigenic properties of breast cancer cells.

The maternally expressed H19 gene is transcribed as an untranslated RNA that serves as a riboregulator. We have previously reported that this transcript accumulates in epithelial cells in approximately 10% of breast cancers. To gain further insight on how the overexpression of the H19 gene affects the phenotype of human breast epithelial cells, we investigated the oncogenic potential of RNA that was abundantly expressed from MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells stably transfected with the genomic sequence of the human H19 gene.

Cross-talk between mesenchyme and epithelium increases H19 gene expression during scattering and morphogenesis of epithelial cells.

The H19 gene is an imprinted gene expressed from the maternal allele. It is known to function as an RNA molecule. We previously reported that in breast adenocarcinoma, H19 is often overexpressed in stromal cells and preferentially located at the epithelium/stroma boundary, suggesting that epithelial/mesenchymal interactions can control H19 RNA expression.